One or two of my drugs are on the most recent FDA drug shortage list linked in this article. While this issue is of great concern to me (as it should be), I have found it’s not just drugs on the actual shortage list that I’ve had issues with getting while I’ve been hospitalized for various things over time. It’s been others, too.
Monthly Archives: January 2016
New Blab Coming Soon
My good friend & fellow blogger buddy, Chelsea, & I were experimenting with Blab yesterday.
In the near future, we want to start up a few sessions & want to invite our followers & friends to participate.
Interesting But Alarming News
This was a difficult alert to read. However, I commend my center for looking into such issues & challenging transplant centers as a whole to do better by their patients.
While this was a liver transplant based study, I am sure livers are not the only organ that are affected by such practices.
In Defense of Digital Health Devices
I am very pro-research on general principle. The exception lies with “studies” (like this example) which measure only specific short-term endpoints that are inherently hard to measure & quantify.
Things like clinical & economic benefit & those associated “outcomes”.
Everyone has a different definition of “success” in these cases. Also just because it doesn’t show something concrete in dollars & cents or in data points doesn’t mean it doesn’t have value.
Transplants & Cancer Risk: Can Sirolimus Help?
Another complication I’ve been seeing frequently occur in some transplant recipients is the increased risk of Cancer (especially skin cancer).
When Enough Is Enough
A fellow blogger tagged me in a tweet today. I know this was an invitation to read through or comment. I’ve played around with writing about this subject a few times. It always feels a bit too uncomfortable to express openly like this, but I’ll give it a try. It doesn’t bother me to discuss it with others in hard situations & quiet rooms when needed. (I hope this doesn’t come across as rambling. It is long. But to me every word is here for a reason.)
I Made A New Friend
As some of you already know, I’ve been taking very workshops & classes in improv for about 2-3 years now. I enjoy them when I do. I’ve learned a variety of other things rather than just short or long form techniques in that time. It has been an excellent way to lift my spirit & sense of humor in difficult situations. Also to keep my mind active. Above all, it is also fun. Fun is important. Most of us with chronic & rare disease don’t seem to get quite enough of that at points.
The “Go-Between” Rides Again
I find myself increasingly becoming a “go-between” for hospital systems, billing offices, & other healthcare entities. I can navigate it but I find it annoying, sometimes I even resent it a little. I should demand a cut or a price break for as often as I have to do this. Continue reading
Infections & Antibiotics
I saw this article in Lung Disease News a few days ago & quite literally breathed a sigh of relief.
This is always a constant question & concern whenever I go into any doctor’s office sick. My primary care doctor, an urgent care clinician, or even pulmonologist will ask me the same question: How do you feel about an antibiotic?
Um, honestly? Damned if I do, damned if I don’t…
Gems From Gifted Life: Videos Worth Viewing
I love these videos on the Gifted Life Youtube channel. I’ve seen them circulate on both Twitter & Facebook from time-to-time & I always smile when I see them.
While some have complained about these videos as being snarky or melodramatic, I think they are delightfully tongue-in-cheek & informative.
AS I LIVE & BREATHE 